A 56-year-old Monroe woman and a 10-year-old girl were killed last night when a chain-reaction crash on South Custer Road pushed their car into the path of an oncoming pickup truck, closing part of M-50 in Raisinville Township for nearly four hours. Four other people were seriously injured in the three-vehicle collision, which happened around 7:12 p.m. west of Plum Grove Drive.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, Amy M. Beason was driving a red 2025 Honda HR-V westbound on South Custer Road and had stopped to turn into a driveway on the south side of the road when a white 2010 Ford F-150, driven by 38-year-old Dundee resident Dustin A. Prajzner, struck the Honda's rear. As reported by CBS News Detroit, the impact shoved the Honda left of center and into the path of a blue 2020 Chevrolet Silverado driven by 61-year-old Richard J. Palmer of Montgomery, Texas, causing a head-on collision.
Beason, of Monroe, was pronounced dead at the scene, and a 10-year-old girl riding in the Honda's front passenger seat was also pronounced dead there, deputies said. The Silverado came to rest facing southwest on the eastbound shoulder, while the Honda ended up facing southeast in a driveway along the south side of the road. Prajzner's F-150 stopped facing westbound on the westbound shoulder; he was not injured and was released from the scene.
Four Hurt, Taken Across State Lines for Treatment
The Silverado was carrying four passengers who suffered serious injuries in the crash: 59-year-old Lisa R. Palmer, who was in the front passenger seat; 23-year-old Samantha G. Palmer and 18-year-old Emma N. Palmer, both rear-seat passengers; and driver Richard J. Palmer himself. All four were taken to ProMedica Toledo Hospital in Toledo, Ohio, where they were listed in serious condition.
The crash drew a wide response from first responders, including the Ida Township Fire Department, Monroe Community Ambulance, the Michigan State Police Motor Carrier Division, the Michigan Department of Transportation, Monroe Community Mental Health Authority, Children's Protective Services, and the Monroe County Sheriff's Office Victim Services unit. M-50 was closed to all traffic in the crash's aftermath, per Michigan Department of Transportation traffic reports, and the roadway reopened around 11 p.m. The Monroe County Sheriff's Office says the crash remains under investigation and is asking anyone with information to contact its Traffic Services Division at 734-240-7725 or Crimestoppers of Michigan at 800-SPEAK-UP.
A Highway With a Troubled History
Wednesday's wreck is the latest in a string of deadly crashes along this stretch of M-50 in Raisinville Township. In May 2025, a 28-year-old Tecumseh man crossed the centerline on South Custer Road east of Strasburg Road, killing himself and critically injuring two women, as WTOL reported at the time — a crash Hoodline also covered in its piece on the Tecumseh man's death.
In October 2024, a 19-year-old mother and an infant died on Custer Road when her car crossed the centerline and struck a semi-truck, according to ClickOnDetroit, a crash Hoodline previously reported on involving a mother and her infant. And in July 2021, a westbound sedan crossed the centerline near Dixon Road and collided head-on with a Ford F-150, causing the pickup to roll over multiple times, ClickOnDetroit also reported.
Sheriff Has Pushed for Safety Recognition on the Corridor
The pattern has not gone unnoticed by local officials. In June, Monroe County Sheriff Troy Goodnough publicly appealed to state lawmakers to pass legislation designating a stretch of M-50 between South Raisinville Road and Herr Road as a memorial highway, according to WTOL. The proposal honors Darrian Young, a 24-year-old Monroe County Animal Control Officer who was killed on duty in June 2020 near M-50 and Raisinville Road when an intoxicated driver ran a red light at 80 mph, according to the Michigan Legislature.
Countywide, the danger is borne out in the numbers. The 2023 Michigan Traffic Crash Facts report recorded 706 traffic crashes in Monroe County that year, including three fatal crashes, three deaths, and 105 injuries. Statewide, intersections account for nearly 30 percent of all traffic fatalities, with 29.2 percent of fatal motor vehicle collisions in Michigan occurring at intersections in 2022, according to attorneys Gallon, Takacs and Boissoneault.
Regional planning data from the Dundee Township Master Plan identifies M-50/South Custer Road as having the seventh-highest crash volume in Monroe County, ranking 476th overall across Southeast Michigan. Raisinville Township's zoning ordinance requires driveway and road intersection sight distances along M-50 to meet Michigan Department of Transportation safety guidelines meant to prevent visual obstructions for drivers making turns. The Monroe County Sheriff's Office operates a dedicated Traffic Services Division and Traffic Crash Reconstruction Team, which handles investigations like Wednesday's as it works to determine what role speed or distraction may have played, and whether any charges will follow.
